Who gets credit for saying, "Eat my flesh and drink my blood?" A. the fictional character Dracula; B. the cannibal in the movie 'Silence of the Lamb;' C. Jesus Christ in the Bread of Life discourse; D. God in the Gospel of John, chapter 6; E. C and D.

Every Roman Catholic Christian and every Orthodox ¹ Christian should know the author of this statement, should fully understand its significance, and should, most importantly, physically digest it weekly, if not daily.

Eat my flesh and drink my blood is spoken by Jesus Christ, God Himself. These words are taken from the Bread of Life discourse, which is recorded in verses 35-59 of the Gospel of John, chapter 6. With the possible exception of numerous chapters in the Book of Revelation, few chapters in the Bible, if any, are more misinterpreted or ignored than John 6. And, yet, for Roman Catholics and Orthodox Christians its meaning is perfectly clear: Jesus Christ gives us His own flesh and blood to eat. It is spiritual food for our challenging journey through life. It is full of God's grace: the single ingredient required for eternal life.

Since the Protestant Reformation, most of our separated brothers and sisters in other Christian communities have rejected the belief that Jesus Christ is truly present in the Holy Eucharist. They read John 6 and think it's a lengthy invitation to faith in Jesus Christ. They declare that eating the flesh and drinking the blood of Jesus is nothing more than a metaphor for believing in Him. Roman Catholics and Orthodox Christians agree that John 6 is a personal invitation to faith; but we vehemently disagree that it is only a metaphor for believing.

Here are the words of our Lord in Jn 6:53-56. "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drink my blood abides in my and I in him."

What's unclear about our Lord's words? Nothing. Could He be any clearer in stating the truth? No. If you think He could, then write a clearer statement.

The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible on the Gospel of John (Revised Standard Version: Second Catholic Edition) offers the following insight on the word Eats as it is used in Jn 6:54, 56, 57, 58. "'Trogo' is the Greek word used in the New Testament for eats. It's a verb that means to chew or gnaw. It is used five times in the Fourth Gospel and only once elsewhere in the NT. Greek literature used it to describe the feeding of animals such as mules, pigs, and cattle, and in some cases for human eating. In John, the verb is used four times in the second half of the Bread of Life discourse (6:54, 56, 57, 58). This marks a noticeable shift in Jesus' teaching, which up until 6:54 made use of a more common verb for eating (Gk. esthio, 6:49, 50, 51, 53). The change in vocabulary marks a change of focus and emphasis, from the necessity of faith to the consumption of the Eucharist. The graphic and almost crude connotation of this verb thus adds greater force to the repetition of His words: He demands we express our faith by eating, in a real and physical way, His life-giving flesh in the sacrament."

Some denominations point to the Old Testament Books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy to reject the literal drinking of blood. Lev 17:10-12 says, "And if anyone...partakes of any blood, I will set myself against that one...No one among you, not even a resident alien, may partake of blood." Deut 12:23 says, "But make sure that you do not partake of the blood; for blood is life, and you shall not consume this seat of life with the flesh." They use these OT verses and others to proclaim that Jesus could not be telling us to literally eat his flesh and drink his blood; for to do so, they reason, would require Jesus to reject His own words as found in the OT. According to the OT, the life of every living body is its blood.

If Jesus were asking us to do something against His teaching, then it would be just as wrong for Him to tell us figuratively as it would be to tell us literally. Think about this. If Jesus were speaking figuratively, then why did He not clarify Himself at the end of Jn 6 when many of His disciples found His words hard to accept? Instead we are told that many of His disciples rejected His words and returned to their former way of life and no longer went with Him.

According to the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible commentary, when we consume the Blessed Sacrament, we are not eating and drinking Jesus' mortal flesh and blood as it was during His earthly ministry, but His glorified humanity as it was after rising from the dead.

After many of Jesus' followers walked away, He turned to the Apostles and asked, "Do you also want to leave?" Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life; and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God."

For two thousand years, Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christians have faithfully consumed the Holy Eucharist: the flesh and blood of immortality for those who believe in Jesus Christ.

(¹Orthodox Christians are Eastern Christian believers who are separated from the full Communion of the Catholic Church but possess and maintain a valid sacramental and hierarchical system. They remain independent of the Pope's authority. These churches include the Albanian, Bulgarian, Greek, Russian, Rumanian, Syrian, Ukrainian, and other Orthodox Churches.)

For more insight read CCC paragraphs 161, 1331, 1333-44, 1381, 1391, 2824. Also, pull out your "Catholic" Bible and reference Gen 9:2; Lev 17:10-14; Deut 12:16-25; Mt 26:26-28; Mk 14:22-24; Lk 22:19-20; Jn 6 (read verses 35-59 twice); 1 Cor 11:23-29; Heb 9:22.